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Re: engine dismantaling, plastic disintegration

To: "MG List" <mgs@autox.team.net>
Subject: Re: engine dismantaling, plastic disintegration
From: Max Heim <mvheim@studiolimage.com>
Date: Wed, 14 Jul 1999 10:41:13 -0700
Congrats on joining the weird and wonderful world of MG ownership.

As for a "slow" rebuild, I 've done it with a Detroit V8 and it's really 
not a problem, so long as...

...you keep things lubricated so crucial surfaces don't rust (mainly the 
bores and bearing surfaces)
...you sort and store small parts and fasteners with labels so you 
remember where they go
...you keep a working list of good parts/bad parts so you don't 
accidentally put bad parts back on
...you follow step-by-step directions from a good manual so you don't 
forget where you are
...you might consider taking photos as you go for reference

As for those deteriorating plastic bits, you can *try* to kludge them 
back together with epoxy, spit and baling wire, but you might as well 
resign yourself to replacing them with good used or new parts. After all, 
you want your new MG to be reliable, right?

Good luck.

David Tulchinsky had this to say:

>Hi,
>
>I just bought my first MG (a 77B).  At the time of purchase I knew there was
>something wrong w/ the engine, but the rest of the car was in decent shape so
>I went ahead w/ the sale.
>
>At this point, me and my mechanic are somewhat afraid to run the engine and
>have decided that a complete rebuild is probably in order.  No problem, just
>a question  of $$.
>
>With that in mind, how problematic is it to rebuilt the engine over the
>course of
>several months, instead of days.  Aside from forgetting were all the parts 
>go,
>will parts rust and be ruined.  I don't have the time of money to do it all
>at once,
>so I figure I'll slowly take it apart, figure out what wrong, and
>replace/rebuild
>as required.  However, if this will cause more harm then good, I'll have to
>take another approach.
>
>Any thoughts out in list-ville??
>
>Second question:
>
>Does anybody have a remedy for plastic disintegration of all the the various
>plastic parts??  It seems that every time I take something out of the car,
>if its made of platic (for example hazard switch, light switch, wiper
>switch) the
>plastic is sooo brittle and dry that it just disintegrates.  Is there a
>solution for
>this aside from complete and total replacement.
>
>Thanks.
>
>-Dave Tulchinsky
>77B, leaking, not running, but still the apple of her owner's heart.
>


--

Max Heim
'66 MGB GHN3L76149
Runs great, 
looks particularly bad since some SUV clown backed into it.
If you're near Mountain View, CA,
it's the red one with the silver bootlid.


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